We are all familiar with the concept of following our dreams. We know we ought to reach for the stars, that we can be whatever we want to be and achieve whatever we put our minds to. It is all a matter of effort, determination, drive, and will, right? I would like to explore this thought a little deeper though. There are potentially discouraging effects of such motivation-inspiring words which might leave some people more depressed than impressed, but it is a very difficult concept to explain.
The words sound good and give us hope so we tend to reiterate them without much extra thought. Along such lines, I have either expected or desired to be someone great from pretty early on. I have never wished to squander my life or my talents. I have intended to put my mind to solving problems and being the savior of the world in one way, shape, or form. A lofty goal, to be sure, but such concepts as achieving what we put our mind to helps keep me going. Or does it? I do not really know why I strive so much to better the world around me, but I can say with certainty that I rarely feel as if I am achieving what I set out to achieve despite keeping hope that maybe it is simply too hard to see. Any kind of grand scheme or concept I might devise to improve the world, however, generally seems to have already been expressed by others far more meticulous, knowledgeable, and... what is that word... the one meaning they can write or speech give better and with the words selection coming out right thing... articulate! Yes, they are much more articulate than me. And yet, I keep on keeping on trying to become something great because it all merely comes down to my own efforts.
Because my goals are often, in short, to change the world or to be renowned for some amazing discovery or insight into the nature of the universe or the psyche of mankind, I think I need to face a simple fact: the odds are stacked against me. There are far too many people in the world for me to achieve greatness of my own accord. If my goal is to be great, even if for the admirable reason of not wasting my life in efforts to help the rest of mankind, there is a significant chance that I will be a failure since I cannot make others recognize me no matter how much I might want to. Such world-changing people are extremely few and far between and the most common theme I have seen among them is that they were not particularly seeking fame or greatness. Of the millions of people in each and every field from entertainment to science and humanitarian efforts, very few people become well-known for their endeavors, and those who do were more focused on solving a problem or enjoying their craft than on what other people thought of their work. I do not wish to give off the idea that I am looking for fame per se, but rather having such an impact as would make fame unavoidable. I want to try so hard that I come up with the most elegant of solutions that the world will be in awe and change everything right before my eyes. This, of course, is extremely unlikely and certainly not everyone is equipped to be the best at any one thing. Different brains do different things.
And so, I look at what I write, I look at the influence I have in the world, and I simply think, "how pathetic." I am a nobody. I have very little voice, impact, and influence in the workings of the world today. And, well, maybe that is all I even deserve. Perhaps I am not truly as insightful or knowledgeable as could change the world. And maybe I am simply not endowed with such abilities. My shooting for the stars simply highlights my own short-comings. It is more like shooting for my foot. And yet, I cannot bring myself to believe that it is bad to try and I certainly would never advocate that anyone ever give up. There is a fine line here which I am trying to express although I am not entirely sure even I understand it. Pursuing a goal is a great idea even if the goal is seemingly impossible or out of reach. The problem, I think, lies in pursuing impact or greatness.
If Bawbette wants to be an astronaut and puts her mind to it, she may be able to achieve it. If her every waking moment consists of studying the relevant fields that would make her an excellent candidate then she should have no trouble. If she is missing half her brain, however, she might simply not be equipped for the task no matter how much she tries. It might be entirely impossible. If she were quadriplegic, then that too would obviously hinder. In all reality, the fact of the matter is that we cannot indeed do whatever we want to do even if it is a legitimate goal for someone else. I am giving extreme examples here, but I think we underestimate the differences of personal capability from brain to brain. Not everyone is equipped for everything and it is far better to be satisfied with what we have than to beat ourselves up over our failure to achieve something.
The words sound good and give us hope so we tend to reiterate them without much extra thought. Along such lines, I have either expected or desired to be someone great from pretty early on. I have never wished to squander my life or my talents. I have intended to put my mind to solving problems and being the savior of the world in one way, shape, or form. A lofty goal, to be sure, but such concepts as achieving what we put our mind to helps keep me going. Or does it? I do not really know why I strive so much to better the world around me, but I can say with certainty that I rarely feel as if I am achieving what I set out to achieve despite keeping hope that maybe it is simply too hard to see. Any kind of grand scheme or concept I might devise to improve the world, however, generally seems to have already been expressed by others far more meticulous, knowledgeable, and... what is that word... the one meaning they can write or speech give better and with the words selection coming out right thing... articulate! Yes, they are much more articulate than me. And yet, I keep on keeping on trying to become something great because it all merely comes down to my own efforts.
Because my goals are often, in short, to change the world or to be renowned for some amazing discovery or insight into the nature of the universe or the psyche of mankind, I think I need to face a simple fact: the odds are stacked against me. There are far too many people in the world for me to achieve greatness of my own accord. If my goal is to be great, even if for the admirable reason of not wasting my life in efforts to help the rest of mankind, there is a significant chance that I will be a failure since I cannot make others recognize me no matter how much I might want to. Such world-changing people are extremely few and far between and the most common theme I have seen among them is that they were not particularly seeking fame or greatness. Of the millions of people in each and every field from entertainment to science and humanitarian efforts, very few people become well-known for their endeavors, and those who do were more focused on solving a problem or enjoying their craft than on what other people thought of their work. I do not wish to give off the idea that I am looking for fame per se, but rather having such an impact as would make fame unavoidable. I want to try so hard that I come up with the most elegant of solutions that the world will be in awe and change everything right before my eyes. This, of course, is extremely unlikely and certainly not everyone is equipped to be the best at any one thing. Different brains do different things.
And so, I look at what I write, I look at the influence I have in the world, and I simply think, "how pathetic." I am a nobody. I have very little voice, impact, and influence in the workings of the world today. And, well, maybe that is all I even deserve. Perhaps I am not truly as insightful or knowledgeable as could change the world. And maybe I am simply not endowed with such abilities. My shooting for the stars simply highlights my own short-comings. It is more like shooting for my foot. And yet, I cannot bring myself to believe that it is bad to try and I certainly would never advocate that anyone ever give up. There is a fine line here which I am trying to express although I am not entirely sure even I understand it. Pursuing a goal is a great idea even if the goal is seemingly impossible or out of reach. The problem, I think, lies in pursuing impact or greatness.
If Bawbette wants to be an astronaut and puts her mind to it, she may be able to achieve it. If her every waking moment consists of studying the relevant fields that would make her an excellent candidate then she should have no trouble. If she is missing half her brain, however, she might simply not be equipped for the task no matter how much she tries. It might be entirely impossible. If she were quadriplegic, then that too would obviously hinder. In all reality, the fact of the matter is that we cannot indeed do whatever we want to do even if it is a legitimate goal for someone else. I am giving extreme examples here, but I think we underestimate the differences of personal capability from brain to brain. Not everyone is equipped for everything and it is far better to be satisfied with what we have than to beat ourselves up over our failure to achieve something.
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